Puzzled? Bunny behaviour

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 12sd replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 7 months ago by TriBun.

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- 08/05/2011 at 4:43 AM
  Bunny's Mom
  Participant
  6 posts
  Hi – Just a little history…we had Big Bunny for nearly a year who is male when we got what we thought was another male bunny. Nunu bunny is a dwarf rabbit (about 3 months when we got her) and they have been inseperable. Two nights ago without any warning, Nunu bunny gave birth to 2 babies that were not alive, they hadn’t formed properly. She had not got any bigger and the only thing that changed on her was that we had noticed and were puzzled about was that she developed a bit of a temper and didn’t want to be touched. A bit shocked and sad, we took Big Bunny to the vet the next day and got him neutered. Since he has come back, she hasn’t left him and try’s to pull a blanket over him. She grabs the corner of the blanket in her mouth and then goes up (as she is much smaller) and tries to cover him. I can’t find out anywhere why she would be doing this…does anyone know? Thank you.
- 08/05/2011 at 4:48 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  You need to separate the bunnies. The male can still impregnate the female for 1-2 months post-neuter. He still has viable sperm.
  
  If she is about 4-5 months, her hormones will be kicking in soon and she’ll need to be spayed in order for them to be able to share the same habitat. Since they need to be separated anyways, you will be able to spay her first and then work on putting them back together.
  
  I am very sorry to hear about the babies. That must have been sad to see. Was she checked out by the vet afterwards to make sure all babies were delivered?
- 08/05/2011 at 4:57 AM
  Bunny's Mom
  Participant
  6 posts
  Thank you, I am still sad about it Omg, no! We didn’t check for more, she can have more still?? I don’t know how to seperate them, they are so close, they groom each other everyday and cuddle together all the time, he even puts food in her mouth
- 08/05/2011 at 5:03 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  It’s possible that not all of the babies were delivered. If she starts to act odd or seem sick/lethargic, the vet would need to do some kind of testing, not sure if it would be an ultrasound or an xray. A leftover fetus can cause problems if not delivered. We have some vet tech members who would know more about this than me tho.
  
  Is he humping her at all? I’m worried she will end up pregnant again. Rabbits are induced ovulators, they do not go into “heat”. This means that the act of mating causes them to release eggs and they can get pregnant almost immediately after giving birth.
- 08/05/2011 at 5:18 AM
  Bunny's Mom
  Participant
  6 posts
  Rabbits are induced ovulators, they do not go into “heat”. This means that the act of mating causes them to release eggs and they can get pregnant almost immediately after giving birth.
  
  Oh wow, well.. we just brought him back from the vet yesterday late afternoon and he seems sore, not moving to much. When she saw him, she tried to hump him actually…since then they have just been laying together, she has been licking his face a lot and trying to put the blanket over him and he gave her some nasturtiums this morning.
- 08/05/2011 at 5:40 AM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  It is very possible she is pregnant again – I would highly recommend a trip to the vet for her as soon as possible. She was much too young to give birth which is probably why the babies did not make it.
  
  I’m happy you got him neutered but he can still get her pregnant up to 30 days after the neuter as Beka mentioned.
  
  Her behavior is hormonal – her hormones are in “overdrive” after giving birth.
- 08/05/2011 at 6:05 AM
  Bunny's Mom
  Participant
  6 posts
  Omg Ok I will take her in soonest! Is she too young too spay and if they can spay her will she then be safe straight away? Thank you
- 08/05/2011 at 6:24 AM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  How old is she now?
- 08/05/2011 at 7:25 AM
  Bunny's Mom
  Participant
  6 posts
  She had been sitting in a pet shop that my mom passed by in June, they said she had been there for about 3 months already, but then they also told my mom that she was a boy. If the 3 months is correct then she would be about 4-5 months old now.
- 08/05/2011 at 7:28 AM
  Sarita
  Participant
  18851 posts
  She’s still pretty young but if your vet has alot of experience and feel comfortable doing a spay, it would be okay. I would discuss the possibility with your vet as soon as you can. Usually 6 months is the preferred age.
- 08/05/2011 at 7:39 AM
  Bunny's Mom
  Participant
  6 posts
  Thank you so much, I will find out from him, it took me quite a while to find a vet here that even knew about bunny’s…so I will question him as to how experienced he is. The first vet I called had to look up on bunny’s from a book and then they said that they would charge a lot for the spaying because it was a risky operation as the anesthetic for bunnies is high risk, needless to say that Big Bunny did not go there. I will check if the vet I did go to is experienced and comfortable enough. Not a lot of people seem to keep bunny’s as pets here Thank you so much to all for your help!! I appreciate it
- 08/05/2011 at 7:45 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  It is very hard to find good rabbit vets in some areas. I am pleased you were able to find someone to neuter your Big Bunny.
  
  Most vets prefer to wait until 6 months to spay, but a spay at 4-5 months is not unheard of with the right vet, and if she can get in ASAP, the spay would also terminate any pregnancy that might have been started in the short time they were together after the birth. I would hate for her (and you) to have to go thru another birth.
  
  Please keep us updated on how everything goes :o)
- 08/12/2011 at 1:05 PM
  TriBun
  Participant
  314 posts
  Wow, that is very dramatic Bunny’s Mom, sorry you’re going through this. You’ll be happy when you get your litle girl spayed though. Female bunnies are high-risk for cancer in their girl parts. I just wanted to say, it’s probably good Nunu turned out to be a girl. Two unaltered males together would tear eachother apart.
  
  You probably already found this out, but pet store employees rarely know anything about bunnies. On a related issue, I got hamsters once that were siblings and supposed to “both be boys.” Yeah, until they had babies. I seperated them as soon as I found the babies, but by then she was already pregnant again. Before I found homes for all the babies from the first litter, those babies started having babies…. Ahhhhh, it was my worst nightmare. Then I found someone with a snake…. I know, It’s awful! Prey animals sure know how to reproduce.
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